Kaiju
The Kaiju are a race of amphibious creaturesKaiju Survival GuidePACIFIC RIM: Be Prepared For A Kaiju Attack With This Survival Guide genetically engineered by an extradimensional race of sentient beings from the Anteverse. In 2013, the Precursors opened a portal between dimensions at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, allowing the Kaiju to enter Earth's dimension. As biological weapons of warfare, Kaiju are extremely hostile and toxic creatures seemingly designed with the intention to wipe out humankind. History : The Kaiju first appeared on August 10th, 2013. The beginning of the incident was believed to be a 7.1 earthquake before the creature later known as the "Trespasser" emerged and attacked the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge. After destorying the bridge, the creature proceeded towards San Francisco, and caused major devastation to the city. The creature continued on to Sacramento and Oakland, causing massive destruction in its attack.Prologue News clippings These attacks continued for six days before it was killed with three nuclear missilesPacific Rim: Tales From Year Zero. The incident in San Francisco was later known as "K-DAY". At first, humanity thought that the attacks on three Californian cities was an isolated event. However, six months later, the next city attacked was Manila, followed by Cabo San Lucas. As Kaiju began to appear in increasing frequency, nothing short of nuclear options were considered as a means to stop them as conventional warfare was proving useless against them. After Scissure attacked Sydney, Dr. Jasper Schoenfeld began to contemplate how to better protect the populace. Inspired by his son's robot and monster action figures, Schoenfeld and Caitlin Lightcap managed to create a prototype that would lead to full production of the Jaegers. The first wave of Kaiju were meant to both test and weaken the boundaries of inhabitants defenses. Despite their varying design and nature, their bodies allow them to adapt and dominate on land and water once they enter earth through the breach''Pacific Rim'' December Teaser Trailer: Raleigh: “We always thought alien life would come from the stars, but it came from deep beneath the pacific — a portal between dimensions in the Pacific Ocean,”. The Kaiju's specific reason for attacking large cities and populaces is to cleanse the environment of "vermin"; in this case, humankind.Pacific Rim: Official Main Trailer The information provided by the Jaeger battles would allow the second wave of Kaiju to adapt to the battle strategies of humankind and proceed to wipe them out in a mass extinction event. By the end of 2024, there were forty six confirmed Kaiju attacks. Fourteen were in 2024 alone resulting in staggering Jaeger losses. Hermann Gottlieb speculated in the aftermath of the assault on Sydney by Mutavore that the increasing appearance of the Kaiju and their attacks suggested that the emergences of Kaiju from the portal would increase until there were mere day or hour lulls in their attacks, leading to the "Double Event" and "Triple Event".Pacific Rim: B-Roll Footage Gottlieb's fears were later confirmed when Leatherback and Otachi simultaneously attacked Hong Kong in search for his colleague, Newton, who had "drifted" with a Kaiju's brain hours ago. The Triple Event later occurred during the mission to bomb the portal; Scunner, Raiju and Slattern all emerged from the portal to defend their masters from certain destruction at the hands of Striker Eureka and Gipsy Danger. The Kaiju and their masters within the boundaries of the portal were destroyed when Gipsy Danger's nuclear reactor was set to self-destruct ending the Kaiju War. Characteristics Biology Kaiju are colossal in size, averaging hundreds of feet in height and thousands of tons in weight. Kaiju are hive-minded creatures of a highly toxic nature and have been categorized on the "Serizawa Scale". Each Kaiju is classified under five different categories. Categories I and II represent the weakest of the Kaiju, while Categories III through V are the strongest. The Serizawa Scale measures water displacement, toxicity and ambient radiation levels given off by their bodies when they pass through the breach.Kaiju Category Table The fluid of a Kaiju is ammonia-based. Should they be killed in battle, their bodies are triggered to self-destruct immediately.THE PACIFIC RIM MONSTERS' DECOMPOSING BODIES MELT CITIES SAYS GUILLERMO DEL TORO Kaiju are able to breathe and survive in multiple types of environments, which include land, underground in extreme heat and high pressure and underwater and environments with no air, such as space. Upon decomposing, their bodies release a noxious agent into the air known as "Kaiju Blue", their blood. Kaiju Blue has the ability to contaminate the air, making it non-breathable. The blood of a Kaiju is highly acidic, corroding anything in its path. This makes it especially hard to gather samples safely for examination and experimentation. As a result, Jaegers have been equipped with weapons that cauterize wounds they inflict on Kaiju to prevent the spread of their highly acidic internal fluids. As silicon-based organisms, the design of their bodies makes it difficult to determine and study particular parts of their internal systems.'del Toro:' So they figure out that the base of fluid of the Kaiju is ammonia-based. So how do they neutralize it? But it takes a while because, first of all, it melts the pavement, melts the structures around it, makes a noxious gas. By the time they get to a Kaiju, the first few attacks, they can't even get samples or corpses or pieces to analyze it. The Kaijus are essentially triggered to self destroy if they fall. So it's a very smart weapon. Two brains control the Kaiju's motor and cognitive functions. Kaiju tissue is cloned from a single strand of DNA by the Precursors, who "build" Kaiju by fusing the sinew of body parts from other Kaiju creations together.@TravisBeacham, July 18, 2013 A manufactured Kaiju may end up with similar body types or limbs as another type of Kaiju as result of cloning.'Travis Beacham:' ...Its partial similarity to the Kaiju on the cover is owed to the fact that some (but not all) of the Kaiju have variant incarnations. If you recall, Trespasser, Knifehead, and Scunner have essentially the same frames with different heads. And when Newt sees the Anteverse, we can see multiple Knifehead-types. Link Once created, Kaiju are pitted against each other. The surviving creations are then used as biological weapons in order to rid a chosen planet of its lifeforms so that they can colonize it.Pacific Rim: Man, Machines & Monsters, page 128'' Bipedal Kaiju tend to possess multiple arms (usually two main arms and a smaller pair), and if that's the case ulna and humerus are visible and a bit spread, making it look like there were two forearms. Kaiju are also shown to be somewhat symbiotic, as they possess large parasitic insects that are attached to their bodies. Behavior K-Science officers speculated that Kaiju are attracted to cities, locking onto centers of population by following urban runoff.Travis Beacham: Kaiju and targeting cities Kaiju are highly aggressive creatures, especially when engaged in combat. However, they are not clumsy nor do they have limited intelligence. Working through a hive mind system, the Kaiju can communicate instantly. This is similar to the way Rangers do in the Drift. Their ability to fight and attack in packs is demonstrated in their battle against the JaegersDanger, Striker Eureka, [[Cherno Alpha] and Crimson Typhoon. Using their superior strength and intelligence, Leatherback and Otachi are able to coordinate attacks against the Jaegers Cherno Alpha and Crimson Typhoon. Leatherback and Otachi tore apart and crushed Cherno Alpha while Crimson Typhoon is taken out immediately by Otachi's tail when it destroys the Conn-Pod containing its pilots. Their role as weapons against the Jaegers is further exemplified when Leatherback uses its organic electromagnetic pulse organ to disable the Striker Eureka. Near the breach, while Slattern faces off with Striker Eureka, Gipsy Danger is attacked unexpectedly by Scunner and Raiju, proving that Kaiju are capable of planning and executing complex combat and ambush strategies. Species of Kaiju Category II *Onibaba Category III *Knifehead *Yamarashi Category IV *Mutavore *Leatherback *Otachi *Raiju *Scunner Category V *Slattern Unknown *Trespasser *Hundun *Kaiceph (Tales From Year Zero) *Scissure (Tales From Year Zero) *Karloff *Reckoner *Raythe *Clawhook *Atticon *Hidoi *Ceramander *Spinejackal *Taurax *Tentalus *Insurrector *Bonesquid *Biantal *Hound *Taranais *Rachnid *Fiend *Tailspitter *Kojiyama *Baby Kaiju *Verocitor (Tales From Year Zero) *Belobog (Tales From Year Zero) *Meathead (Tales From Year Zero) *Hardship *Hammerjaw Development According to del Toro there are nine Kaiju chosen and designed for the film, each one with its own personality and abilities. At least forty different Kaiju were designed in the process. Based on the silhouettes designed by the production team, del Toro would hold an "American Idol"-type contest and gradually eliminate the silhouettes they didn't like.Unbelievable Pacific Rim video reveals all of the Kaiju's secrets All Kaiju are based on familiar creatures in the real world, such as gorillas and sharks. The very design of the Kaiju in the film are meant to reflect and pay homage to actors who donned suits to bring monsters such as Godzilla to life. Etymology The word "Kaiju" is a Japanese word that literally translates to "strange beast," but is often translated in English as "monster". Kaiju may refer to any bizarre creature, but in recent times Kaiju is typically associated with a genre of films originally made popular in Japan in the 1950's. The most famous Kaiju in history is Godzilla. Other well-known Kaiju monsters include Mothra, Anguirus, Rodan, Gamera and King Ghidorah. Terms related to Kaiju include: *Kaijū eiga: A monster movieKaiju @Wikipedia.org *Kaijin: Human-like monsters. *Daikaiju: A giant monster, specifically meaning the larger variety of monsters. *Ultra-kaiju: Monsters in the Ultra Series *Seijin: Japanese term for aliens, also frequently called Uchujin which means "space beings". Trivia *The "Serizawa Scale" is likely named after Dr. Daisuke Serizawa, the scientist from the original 1954 Gojira film who was responsible for the creation and deployment of the "Oxygen Destroyer", which finally killed the original Godzilla. *Travis Beachman cites the connection (or lack thereof) between the Dinosaurs and the Kaiju was made deliberately vague as it ties to nature of the Precursors.@TravisBeacham July 19, 2013 *Travis Beacham describes the Kaiju as a "Darwinian Army". *According to Tales From Year Zero and Pacific Rim, four Kaiju attacked in 2013 and 2014. *According to the Pan Pacific Defense Corps. Timeline graphs, four Kaiju attacked in 2015 alone.Re: Pacific Rim (Spoilers thread) *In the novelization of Pacific Rim, the second Kaiju attack occurred five months later in Hong Kong; the third attack is eight months later in Sydney.Pacific Rim: The Official Movie Novelization Gallery Prologue sdcvcsxz.JPG|The portal used by the Kaiju to travel to Earth. kaiju_skeleton_625.jpg|The skull of Trespasser on display. Dead.JPG|The remains of a Kaiceph being transported via aircraft carrier. Kaiju City.jpg|A city being constructed around a dead Kaiju. Kaiju Excrement.jpg|A city contaminated by excrement left by Hundun. Kaiju Footprint.jpg|A Kaiju footprint. Karloff.JPG|Karloff attacks Kaiju Blood.jpg|Several workers sterilize a shore of Kaiju Blue. Pan Pacific Alliance Prologue.jpg|Kaiju remains confiscated by the PPDC Romeo Blue vs Hardship Sneakers.jpg|An example of marketing the Jaeger and Kaiju Kaiju Propaganda 02.jpg|A Kaiju costume promoted on teleivison. Kaiju Remains 01.jpg Kaiju Remains 02.jpg Kaiju Remains 03.jpg Kaiju Remains 04.jpg Kaiju Culture 01.jpg|An example of Kaiju culture in music and fashion Kaiju Prologue Fashion.jpg Kaiju Street Art.jpg Kaiju Church 01.jpg|An example of Kaiju worship and religion Kaiju Church 02.jpg Kaiju Burning 01.jpg Promotional Scsccs.png|The Kaiju Leatherback. Exclusive-enormous-pacific-rim-poster-133938-a-1367572620-470-75.jpg|Otachi rising from the sea. Kaiju crashing through a dam.png|Mutavore crashing through the Sydney wall. Concept Art Kaiju.1.jpg Kaiju.2.jpg Karloff Concept.jpg File:Art-axehead_concept_kaiju000.jpg|Early Mutavore concept (by Simon WebberBladehead Concept) Otachi Concept 01.jpg|Concept art of Otachi's internal system Otachi Concept 02.jpg Other pacific-rim-height chart.jpg|A size chart for Pacific Rim, showing the Striker Eureka at 250 feet tall and a Kaiju being 300. File:Art-aa-map.jpg|Unofficial Map of kaiju attacks Notes References Category:Lore Category:Kaiju